Having trouble controlling those many snacks during the day? Struggling to stick to your diet for lack of low calorie snacks? Try some of these special low calorie snacks, designed with you and your family’s health in mind.

Crab Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons light or regular mayonnaise
3 tablespoons fat free sour cream
3 tablespoons Italian seasoned dry bread crumbs (panko crumbs can be substituted)
3 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
1 can (6 1/2 ounces) crabmeat (or 1 cup fresh crabmeat), rinsed and drained well
Dash or two Tabasco
Black pepper to taste
18 medium sized mushrooms, stems removed

Preparation:

1.Preheat slow cooker to high heat.
2.Meanwhile, in small bowl, combine fat free sour cream, mayonnaise, Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, and garlic. Fold in the crabmeat. Add Tabasco and black pepper to taste.
3.Spoon heaping teaspoons full of crab filling into mushroom caps.
4.Arrange mushroom caps (crab side up) in the bottom of the preheated slow cooker. Add cover and cook on HIGH for about 2 hours. Reduce heat to LOW and serve the crab-stuffed mushrooms from the slow cooker if desired.

Yield:

Makes 9 servings (2 mushrooms per serving)

Cheese Fondue

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon no-trans-fat margarine (with 8 grams of fat per tablespoon)
2 tablespoons fat-free or light sour cream
2 1/2 tablespoons Wondra quick-mixing flour
3/4 cup fat-free half-and-half
3/4 cup low-fat milk
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch ground nutmeg or cayenne red pepper
3/4 cup shredded light Jarlsberg cheese (or reduced-fat Swiss)
1/2 cup reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan

Preparation:

1.Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat; blend in the sour cream and flour to make a paste. Whisk in the milk and half-and-half and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to simmer, stir in salt, pepper, and cayenne, and stir frequently until the sauce thickens (about 5 minutes). Whisk in an additional tablespoon of Wondra flour, if needed, for desired thickness.

2.Remove from heat, stir in shredded cheeses and stir well. Pour cheese into slow cooker or fondue pot and set on HIGH. Serve with cubes of sourdough or French bread, or lightly cooked vegetables (broccoli or cauliflower florets work well).

Yield:

4-6 servings